Top Ten - Engineering Projects!!

I figured that given I'm an engineering student and all that, and that my blog has the word "Engineer" in its name, I should at least once in a while do something Engineering related. So what better than a Top Ten of my all time absolutely most favourite engineering projects ever???

When I was putting this list together I made the decision very early on that the list would comprise of projects under construction already aswell as projects which have/were only proposed/imagined. So here we go:

10. X-Seed 4000 - Tokyo and Tsui Tower - outside Ulaan Bataar

I've put both of these in tenth place because at the core they both plan to do the same thing. Build HUGE F**KING....YOKES.... that would literally accomodate the population of an entire city. I mean these things are like what we see in science fiction movies/shows. They get on the list for their shear scale. The X-Seed is the tallest building ever imagined that has blueprints (4000 metres by the way). IF we're really lucky, and we behave ourselves, we MIGHT just see these buildings in our life times.... after when pigs fly, the Klingons invade, I get a date, Liverpool win the Premiership, I buy an Xbox, Final Fantasy 5000 is made, Ireland uses up all its peat, I find Dara O Briain funny and I'm declared the sexiest man alive.

9. Pyramid City - Tokyo

The plan, at the very least, is to build a self contained city in a giant...and I mean GIANT pyramid which would sit somewhere in Tokyo Bay (I believe anyway). It's earned a place on the list solely on its ambition, but I find the likelihood that we'll ever see it in the flesh to be less than impossible.

8. Gibraltar Bridge - Gibraltar??

Strangely enough this is the only project I have on this list that isn't a high rise structure. The Gibraltar Bridge while ambitious is a project who's benefits are very evident. Coupled with the innovative design of combining bridge styles aswell as the shear scale of the project, the Gibraltar Bridge is certainly one to look out for in the future.

7. Sky City - Tokyo

My first experience of Sky City was on Discovering Channel on "Extreme Engineering" and at the time I thought it was simply incredible. And it is, but I can only give it position number 7, simply because there are projects in circulation now that are simply more ambitious. I must say however that of all the buildings "proposed", Sky City most definitely looks to be the one that has been planned out the most. All it needs is planning permission....:P

6. Hyder Tower - Dubai

I don't know too much about this tower and as far as I know it is completely in the conception phase of design. To the left of it is the Burj Dubai and to the right in the distance is the Al-Burj. There's not much I need to say....just look at it....

5. Al Burj - Dubai

While still only in the design phase, should it be built, Al Burj looks set to be one of the most magnificent high rise structures ever imagined. Where modern high rise buildings tend to taper off as they get higher, the design of Al-Burj looks to be so solid that one can't help but admire the vision.

4. Burj Dubai - Dubai

Currently the world's tallest man made structure... and it's still not finished. Set to top off at around 900m high, Burj Dubai is certainly a site to behold. As incredible as Burj Dubai is, and for all the world records it (broke and) set for engineering and construction, it only reaches number 4 on my list.

3. Taipei 101 - Taiwan

The highest position on this list of a building that is actually complete, Taipei 101 set a new standard for high rise buildings. The pendulum idea which resists the buildings sway in the breeze is an ingenious solution. As well as the classy design, Taipei well deserves its position here.

2. The Illinois - Chicago

A building that was no doubt beyond its time, the Illinois would have stood over a mile high, indeed its other name is in fact "Mile High City". While constructing the Illinois would have been beyond Frank Lloyd Wright's America, it is only now that the construction is a possibility... a true sign that it was ahead of its time.

1. Dubai City Tower - Dubai

Unfortunately I don't really know a whole lot about this one. It's only recently been proposed but at 2.4 kilometers high this is certainly one of the most incredible (and viable) engineering projects I've ever seen. As you've seen from this list already, Dubai is the place to be for engineering right now and as ambitious as this structure sounds, I've no doubt that they will pull it off! (NOTE: it is quite possible that Dubai City Tower is actually Hyder Tower in position 6. however due to the lack of solid information on both projects, particularly Hyder Tower, I can only assume they are two seperate projects)

As I mentioned above, right now Dubai and (to be more general) the Middle-East, is the capital of modern 21st century Engineering. Given the buildings currently under construction, as well as countless projects that I haven't even mentioned, and all the other projects in the design phase, Dubai will most certainly be the home of the skies for decades to come.

In past centuries, engineering - and indeed architecture - has left the marks which shaped those time periods in the history books. After the 20th century was scarred by conflict and war, the outlook for the 21st is promising, especially with so many things being built for people to leave their mark on the planet, showing prosperity and a desire to achieve greater and greater things, further bridging the gap between the impossible and our imaginations...

~The Damo

UCD Gateway Unveiled!!!!

International award wining architect Christoph Ingenhoven from Dusseldorf, Germany, has been selected as architect for the massive 13 hectare Gateway project on the UCD campus at Belfield, Dublin. Ingenhoven Architects were chosen after an international competition that drew interest from 62 firms from across the globe. The winning design was viewed and approved by the university’s Governing Authority.

The firm is best known for its new headquarters for Lufthansa in Frankfurt and the new European Investment Bank headquarters which is currently under construction in Luxemburg.

“We are delighted with the outcome of the competition,” said UCD President, Dr Hugh Brady. “The creativity of the design from Christoph Ingenhoven’s team meets the vision we set out to create a precinct of modern beauty which blends with the natural landscape of the campus and surpasses environmental standards for energy usage.

The winning design has proposed a new building edge on to the N11 frontage of UCD, which in turn will enclose a revitalised green oasis at the heart of the university. These circular green spaces will be bounded by a tree-lined belt walk. The newly laid out open space will be traversed by pathways creating stronger linkages between the various campus buildings. To help form the centre circles, the architects propose reducing the size of the existing lake and softening its edges.


(Pictured viewing winning Gateway architectural model: Architect, Christoph Ingenhoven and UCD President, Dr Hugh Brady)

Access to the green space and the wider campus will be through a dramatic new Gateway building. The new building forms are softened by echoing the curved theme of the landscape design. The buildings in the Gateway are linked at the centre by a 6 storey open air glass-covered roof over a new pedestrian plaza around which many new amenities will be clustered. The design takes Belfield’s geographical position into account with the mountains and prevailing winds to the south west and the elevation over the sea to the east.

Within the Gateway will be a mix of uses including: a culture and exhibition centre, cinema, hotel, student residences, office and retail facilities, crèche and medical centre. “The campus environment will be greatly enhanced by providing a cultural/entertainment centre for students which will also attract the local community and visitors from further afield,” said Dr Brady. “The new facilities will enable the university to expand its academic and non-academic conference provision and increase the out-of-term usage of the campus.” The central plaza will offer a dynamic and vibrant space for students, staff and visitors to the campus. The plan is to include 1,000 residences in the Gateway to augment the current student on-campus accommodation.

The extent of the Gateway will cover 13 hectares of the 132 hectare Belfield campus. Fronting onto the N11 it reaches south as far as Merville House, the UCD Innovation Park and incorporates the current location of the running track – which is being relocated to the sports section of the campus and the recently restored Belfield House. To the west, it allows for existing buildings including the engineering centre and those along the pedestrian spine stretching from the Quinn Business School to the science centre. To the north it includes O’Reilly Hall and links the veterinary hospital.



Ingenhoven architects are known for their innovative high-tech approach to sustainable building design and the proposal includes many innovative ideas in this regard.

The design – which is subject to planning permission – includes a proposed light weight arch extension to the N11 flyover. The new bridge design will provide a safer pedestrian environment at the entrance to the campus where people will be given priority over vehicles. The current surface carparks beside O’Reilly Hall and the engineering complex will be replaced with multi-storey and underground parking. This reclaimed land will become part of Gateway as green space in the beltwalk parks.

Green building design is central to the work of Ingenhoven Architects. The new Gateway complex integrates low energy and building control systems to reduce total energy consumption. Intelligent facades provide for insulation, natural ventilation and maximum daylight. Efficient lighting systems, solar and geothermal-backed conditioning systems and “non stand-by” technologies will also reduce energy demand.

The design is due to go on display in the university. The project will be self-funding and the university is currently in the process of inviting expressions of interest from developers with a view to forming a partnership. Until such time as this process is completed the university is not in a position to put a value on the cost of the project. The design allows for phased development and after planning approval, is expected to take several years to complete.

-Courtesy of UCD.ie

~The Damo

New Seven Wonders of the World!

Yes it's a double post today, below is the new plans for Dublin Port!

Anyway, this is just a quick blog about the new Seven Wonders of the World. Here is the site to vote:

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=409

Anyone can vote, all you have to do is enter your email to register. It's our part in shaping history. The new Seven Wonders will be announced on the 7-07-07 in Lisbon, Portugal.

You may ask: "What's wrong with the current Seven Wonders of the World?".

The answer is that the criteria to be a Wonder of the World has changed, so that the structure must still be standing. The Pyramids at Giza are the only ones still standing. Furthermore, the very inclusion of the original wonders has been greatly questioned, as there are very little remains if any, of their very existence. All we have is documentation that may have been falsified. The new list is a list for our age and generation. To be a wonder, the structure must be a revolution of construction, design, engineering skill and architectural vision for its time.

The candidates are:

The Acropolis - Greece
Hagia Sophia - Turkey
The Kremlin/St. Basil's - Russia
The Colosseum - Italy
Neuschwanstein Castle - Germany
The Eiffel Tower - France
Stonehenge - United Kingdom
The Alhambra - Spain
The Great Wall of China - China
Kiyomizu Temple - Japan
The Sydney Opera House - Austrailia
Angkor - Cambodia
The Taj Mahal - India
Timbuktu - Mali
Petra - Jordan
The Pyramids of Giza - Egypt
The Statue of Christ Redeemer - Brazil
The Easter Island Statues - Chile
Machu Picchu - Peru
Chichen Itza - Mexico
The Statue of Liberty - U.S.A

Images can be found here:

http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php?id=526&L=0

I believe the Pyramids will be automatically added to this list, though I'm unsure at present.

Expect a full blog, including descriptions of the structures when the results are announced.

~The Damo